PizzaExpress is launching its first gluten-free menu, welcoming back customers who struggle to eat out with first-rate, gluten-free pizza bases, starters, desserts, options for children and a refreshing, gluten-free beer. For the 1 in 100 people across the UK with coeliac disease, and those with gluten-intolerances, the range will carry Coeliac UK’s NGCI accreditation from 30 April.
Rigorous training and processes
PizzaExpress’ new gluten-free dishes have been carefully created, not to simply pay lip-service to those with gluten-free diets, but to offer them a full eating-out experience. This includes the introduction of gluten-free flour in restaurants to prevent cross-contamination, a rigorous training programme to ensure its restaurant teams are familiar with the needs of customers who cannot eat gluten, and new ways of working.
Separate ladles will be used to spread PizzaExpress’ famous Passata sauce onto gluten-free bases, while new mozzarella packets and Passata jars will be opened when preparing gluten-free pizzas. Clean pizza peels (the large spade-like utensils used to take the pizzas out of the oven) will be used, while new pizza screens (the round, metal frames that the pizzas are stretched onto) have been purchased and will be stored separately to those used for PizzaExpress’ regular pizzas.
Welcoming people with celiac disease
Emma Woods, Marketing Director at PizzaExpress said, “We know, because they’ve told us, that people with coeliac disease want to come to our restaurants, and we want to welcome them. We’ve been obsessively concerned with getting our approach right. Not only have we found a gluten-free base that behaves in a similar way to our famous dough, but we’ve created a whole range of delicious gluten-free dishes, without compromising on taste.”
Coeliac UK chief executive, Sarah Sleet, said, “We know that eating out safely is a top concern for people with coeliac disease, who must follow a strict gluten-free diet for life. We’re working with the restaurant sector to help them deliver good quality menu choices for people with coeliac disease and are delighted that PizzaExpress is recognising the importance of catering for this market. We’ve been very impressed that, in addition to overhauling their operations, they have also committed to using gluten-free flour in all restaurants when stretching their regular bases.”
All dishes that are suitable for people with coeliac disease will be highlighted on the menu with Coeliac UK’s NGCI symbol of accreditation.